Emitter for electron-beam projection lithography system and manufacturing method thereof

ABSTRACT

An emitter for an electron-beam projection lithography (EPL) system and a manufacturing method therefor are provided. The electron-beam emitter includes a substrate, an insulating layer overlying the substrate, and a gate electrode including a base layer formed on top of the insulating layer to a uniform thickness and an electron-beam blocking layer formed on the base layer in a predetermined pattern. The manufacturing method includes steps of: preparing a substrate; forming an insulating layer on the substrate; forming a base layer of a gate electrode by depositing a conductive metal on the insulating layer to a predetermined thickness; forming an electron-beam blocking layer of the gate electrode by depositing a metal capable of anodizing on the base layer to a predetermined thickness; and patterning the electron-beam blocking layer in a predetermined pattern by anodizing. The emitter provides a uniform electric field within the insulating layer and simplify the manufacturing method therefor.

This application claims the priority of Korean Patent Application No.2003-16288 , filed on Mar. 15, 2003, in the Korean Intellectual PropertyOffice, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an electron-beam lithography projectionsystem, and more particularly, to an electron-beam emitter capable ofsecuring a uniform electric field within an insulating layer of theemitter and simplifying a manufacturing method therefor.

2. Description of the Related Art

During a semiconductor manufacturing process, various lithographictechniques are employed to form a desired pattern on the surface of asubstrate. Conventional optical lithography using light such asultraviolet rays has a limit regarding a line width that can beimplemented with this technique. For this reason, next generationlithography (NGL) techniques have been recently proposed, by which moreminiaturized and integrated semiconductor ICs with nano-scale linewidths can be realized. Examples of the NGL techniques includeelectron-beam projection lithography (EPL), ion projection lithography(IPL), extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL), and proximity X-raylithography.

Among the NGL systems, EPL systems for patterning an electron-resistcoated on a substrate to be processed into a desired form by usingelectron-beams emitted from an emitter are currently widely used sincethey have a simplified structure and it is easy to implement alarge-area electron-beam emitter. Electron beam emitters with variousstructures can be adopted for this EPL system, and two examples of thesestructures are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS)type emitter 10 has a structure in which an insulating layer 12 and agate electrode 13 are sequentially stacked on a silicon substrate 11.The insulating layer 12 is formed from a silicon oxide layer, and thegate electrode 13 is made of conductive metal such as gold (Au).

As shown in FIG. 2, a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) type emitter 20 has astructure in which a lower electrode 22, an insulating layer 23, and agate electrode 24 are sequentially stacked on a silicon substrate 21.Typically, the lower electrode 22 is made of aluminum (Al)-neodymium(Nd) alloy, the insulating layer 23 is made of anodized alumina, and thegate electrode 24 is made of a conductive metal such as gold (Au).

The insulating layers 12 and 23 of the conventional MIS and MIM typeemitters 10 and 20, respectively, are patterned into a predeterminedform and comprise thin and thick portions. In the emitters constructedabove, electrons are emitted through the thin portions of the insulatinglayers 12 and 23.

FIGS. 3A-3D are cross-sections for explaining a method of manufacturingthe conventional MIS type emitter 10 shown in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG.3A, the surface of the silicon substrate 11 is thermally oxidized toform a silicon oxide layer 12 a to a predetermined thickness. Then, asshown in FIG. 3B, the silicon oxide layer 12 a are patterned into adesired form, and a silicon oxide layer 12 b is formed as shown in FIG.3C. As a result, the insulating layer 12 is lapped over the siliconsubstrate 11 in a predetermined pattern. Finally, as shown in FIG. 3D, aconductive metal such as gold (Au) is deposited over the entire surfaceof the insulating layer 12 to a predetermined thickness to form the gateelectrode 13. After undergoing the above steps, the MIS type emitter 10configured as above is completed.

The conventional MIM type emitter 20 of FIG. 2 is manufactured in asimilar way. The process of manufacturing the conventional emitter 10 or20 involves forming the insulating layer 12 or 23 by performing twosteps of forming an oxide layer and one step of patterning the oxidelayer and forming the gate electrodes 13 or 24 on the stepped insulatinglayer 12 or 23. This process is very complicated and in addition theconventional emitter 10 or 20 does not secure a uniform electric fieldwithin the insulating layer 12 or 23 due to the stepped structure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an electron-beam emitter capable ofsecuring a uniform electric field within an insulating layer of theemitter and simplifying the manufacturing process and manufacturingmethod thereof.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided anemitter for an electron-beam projection lithography (EPL) systemincluding: a substrate; an insulating layer overlying the substrate; anda gate electrode comprised of a base layer, formed on the insulatinglayer to a uniform thickness, and an electron-beam blocking layer formedon the base layer in a predetermined pattern. Here, the insulating layeris made of a silicon oxide layer.

The emitter according to this invention may further include a lowerelectrode between the substrate and the insulating layer, and theinsulating layer is made from an anodized metal.

While the base layer is made of a conductive metal such as gold (Au),platinum (Pt), aluminum (Al), titanium (Ti), or tantalum (Ta), theelectron-beam blocking layer is made of a metal capable of anodizingsuch as titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), or ruthenium (Ru). The base layerand the electron-beam blocking layer of the gate electrode may also bemade of silicon.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda method of manufacturing an emitter for an electron-beam projectionlithography (EPL) system. The method includes steps of: (a) preparing asubstrate; (b) forming an insulating layer on the substrate; (c) forminga base layer of a gate electrode by depositing a conductive metal on theinsulating layer to a predetermined thickness; (d) forming anelectron-beam blocking layer of the gate electrode by depositing a metalcapable of anodizing on the base layer to a predetermined thickness; and(e) patterning the electron-beam blocking layer in a predeterminedpattern by anodizing.

Here, the substrate is a silicon wafer, and the insulating layer is madeof a silicon oxide layer formed by thermally oxidizing the surface ofthe silicon wafer.

Before step (b), the method may further including a step of forming alower electrode on the substrate. In this case, the insulating layer isformed by depositing a metal capable of anodizing on the lower electrodeand anodizing the metal.

Step (e) includes steps of: anodizing the electron-beam blocking layerin a predetermined pattern by scanning probe microscope (SPM)lithography; and removing the anodized portion of the electron-beamblocking layer by etching.

Step (e) may also include steps of: coating a resist on the surface ofthe electron-beam blocking layer; patterning the resist in apredetermined pattern; anodizing a portion of the electron-beam blockinglayer exposed by patterning of the resist; and removing the anodizedportion of the electron-beam blocking layer by etching and cleaning offthe resist.

Alternatively, the method of manufacturing an emitter for an EPL systemmay include steps of: (a) preparing a substrate; (b) forming aninsulating layer on the substrate; (c) depositing a first silicon layeron the insulating layer to a uniform thickness; (d) patterning the firstsilicon layer in a predetermined pattern; and (e) depositing a secondsilicon layer on the insulating layer exposed in step (d) and firstsilicon layer and forming a gate electrode comprised of the first andsecond silicon layers.

Here, step (d) includes steps of: coating a resist on the surface of thefirst silicon layer; patterning the resist in a predetermined pattern;and etching the first silicon layer using the resist as an etch mask.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objects and advantages of the present invention will becomemore apparent by describing in detail preferred embodiments thereof withreference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-section showing the structure of a conventionalmetal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) type emitter adopted for anelectron-beam projection lithography (EPL) system;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section showing the structure of a conventionalmetal-insulator-metal (MIM) type emitter adopted for an EPL system;

FIGS. 3A-3D are cross-sections showing steps in a method ofmanufacturing the conventional MIS type emitter of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 schematically shows an EPL system adopting an MIS type emitteraccording to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a graph showing the relationship between the thickness of thegate electrode and electron transfer ratio;

FIG. 6 is a cross-section showing the structure of an MIM type emitteraccording to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 7A-7H are cross-sections showing steps in a method ofmanufacturing the MIS type emitter of this invention shown in FIG. 4according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 8A-8D are cross-sections showing steps in a method ofmanufacturing the MIS type emitter of this invention shown in FIG. 4according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and

FIGS. 9A-9C are cross-sections showing steps in a method ofmanufacturing the MIM type emitter of this invention shown in FIG. 6,according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 4, an electron-beam projection lithography (EPL)system includes a metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) type emitter 100that emits electron beams toward an electron-resist 151 applied on asubstrate 150 to be processed, power supplies 161 and 162 that create anelectric field between the emitter 100 and the substrate 150 to beprocessed, and magnets 171 and 172 disposed outside of the emitter 100and the substrate 150 to be processed for creating a magnetic fieldbetween the emitter 100 and the substrate 150 to be processed. For themagnets 171 and 172, a permanent magnet or electromagnet can be used.

The MIS type emitter 100 includes a substrate 110, an insulating layer120 overlying the substrate 120, and a gate electrode 130 overlying theinsulating layer 120. The gate electrode 130 includes a base layer 131conformably overlying the insulating layer 120 and an electron-beamblocking layer 132 formed on the base layer 131 in a predeterminedpattern.

For the substrate 110, a silicon substrate can be used. The insulatinglayer 120 may include a silicon oxide formed by thermally oxidizing thesilicon substrate 110. Unlike the conventional art, the insulating layer120 is formed to a constant thickness so that an electric field createdwithin the insulating layer 120 is uniform.

While the base layer 131 of the gate electrode 130 may be made ofconductive metal such as gold (Au), platinum (Pt), aluminum (Al),titanium (Ti), or tantalum (Ta), the electron-beam blocking layer 132 ismade of metal capable of anodizing such as titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al),or ruthenium (Ru). The base layer 131 and the electron-beam blockinglayer 132 can be made of silicon.

In the emitter 100, the base layer 131 is formed to a uniform thickness,and the electron-beam blocking layer 132 has a predetermined pattern.Thus, the base layer 131 has portions covered and uncovered by theelectron-beam blocking layer 132. That is, the gate electrode 130including the base layer 131 of a uniform thickness and theelectron-beam blocking layer 132 patterned in a predetermined patternhas a different thickness.

Electron emission characteristics of the emitter 100 typicallysensitively vary with material characteristics and thickness of the gateelectrode 130. In particular, as the gate electrode 130 becomes thicker,the amount of electrons emitted through the gate electrode 130 decreasessignificantly. The relationship between the thickness of the gateelectrode 13 and electron transfer ratio is shown in a graph of FIG. 5.The graph is disclosed in a paper by Kuniyoshi Yokoo, et al. (J. Vac.Sci. Technol. B, Vol, 12, No. 2, March/April 1994).

It is evident from the graph of FIG. 5 that as the thickness of gateelectrode increases, electron transfer ratio decreases greatly. Forexample, if the thickness of the gate electrode made of aluminum doublesfrom 10 to 20 nm, the electron transfer ratio decreases from 10⁻⁴ to10⁻⁶ by a factor of 100. The same characteristic is exhibited in a gateelectrode made of silicon (Si).

Returning to FIG. 4, in the emitter 100, when a gate voltage V_(G) isapplied between the silicon substrate 110 and the gate electrode 130,the electron beams are emitted from the emitter 100 by penetratingthrough the portion of the gate electrode 130 uncovered by theelectron-beam blocking layer 132, that is, its thin portion, accordingto the electron emission characteristics with respect to the thicknessof the gate electrode 130. However, the electron beams can be scarcelyemitted through the thick portion of the gate electrode 130, i.e., aportion covered by the electron-beam blocking layer 132. The electronbeams emitted from the emitter 100 are accelerated due to anacceleration voltage V_(A) applied between the gate electrode 130 andthe substrate 150 to be processed and directed to collide with theelectron resist 150 coated on the surface of the substrate 150 to beprocessed. The electron-resist 151 is then patterned in the same form asthe electron-beam blocking layer 132. In this case, a magnetic field canbe created between the emitter 100 and the substrate 150 to be processedby the external magnets 171 and 172 for focusing of the electron beams.

FIG. 6 is a cross-section showing the structure of an MIM type emitteraccording to a second embodiment of this invention. Referring to FIG. 6,an MIM type emitter 200 according to this invention consists of a lowerelectrode 215 overlying a substrate 210, an insulating layer 220overlying the lower electrode 215, and a gate electrode 230 overlyingthe insulating layer 220. The gate electrode 230 includes a base layer231 overlying the insulating layer 220 and an electron-beam blockinglayer 232 formed on the base layer 231 in a predetermined pattern. Inthis way, the MIM type emitter 200 has the same structure as the MIStype emitter 100 except for the presence of the lower electrode 215between the substrate 210 and the insulating layer 220. Thus, the MIMtype emitter 200 will now be described with respect to this difference.

For the substrate 210, a silicon substrate can be used. The lowerelectrode 215 is formed from aluminum (Al)-neodymium (Nd) alloy, and theinsulating layer 220 is made of anodized alumina having a uniformthickness.

The gate electrode 230 including the base layer 231 and theelectron-beam blocking layer 232 as shown in the MIS type emitter 100 isidentical with the gate electrode 130 in terms of materials andstructures of both layers. Since the operation and effects of the MIMtype emitter 200 is the same as the MIS type emitter 100, a detaileddescription will be omitted.

In a method of manufacturing the MIS type emitter shown in FIG. 4 willnow be described with references to FIGS. 7A-7H.

First, referring to FIG. 7A, the substrate 110 is prepared, and theinsulating layer 120 is formed on the substrate 110. Specifically, asilicon wafer may be used as the substrate 110. The surface of theprepared substrate 110 is thermally oxidized to form a silicon oxidelayer of a uniform thickness thereon. The silicon oxide layer serves asthe insulating layer 120.

FIG. 7B shows the state in which the base layer 131 has been formed onthe insulating layer 120. Specifically, to form the base layer 131, aconductive metal such as gold (Au), platinum (Pt), aluminum (Al),titanium (Ti), or tantalum (Ta) is deposited on the insulating layer 120to a predetermined thickness by means of vacuum evaporation orsputtering.

FIG. 7C shows the state in which the base layer 131 has been covered bythe electron-beam blocking layer 132. Specifically, the electron-beamblocking layer 132 may be formed by depositing a metal capable ofanodizing, such as titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), or ruthenium (Ru), onthe base layer 131 to a predetermined thickness by vacuum evaporation orsputtering.

FIGS. 7D and 7E show a first method of patterning the electron-beamblocking layer 132 in a desired form. As shown in FIG. 7D, only aportion electron-beam blocking layer 132 through which the electronbeams are to be emitted is anodized by scanning probe microscope (SPM)lithography. Then, as shown in FIG. 7E, the anodized portion of theelectron-beam blocking layer 132 is removed by etching. In this case,since the oxide layer formed by anodizing has a high etching selectivitywith respect to the unanodized portion of the electron-beam blockinglayer 132, only the oxide layer formed by anodizing can be easilyremoved by etching.

After having undergone the above steps, the MIS type emitter 100 havingthe gate electrode 130 including the base layer 131 with a uniformthickness and the patterned electron-beam blocking layer 132 iscompleted as shown in FIG. 7E.

Meanwhile, FIGS. 7F-7H show a second method of patterning theelectron-beam blocking layer 132 in a desired shape. First, referring toFIG. 7F, a resist R is applied on the entire surface of theelectron-beam blocking layer 132 formed in step shown in FIG. 7C andthen patterned in a desired pattern. In this case, resist patterning canbe performed by photolithography or typical lithography such as EPL.This is followed by anodizing of the electron-beam blocking layer 132 asshown in FIG. 7G. At this time, the exposed portion of the electron-beamblocking layer 132 is anodized instead of the portion covered by thepatterned resist R. The anodized portion of the electron-beam blockinglayer 132 is then removed by etching, and the remaining resist R iscleaned off. At this time, the cleaning of the resist R may be performedbefore or after the etching process. After the above steps, the MIS typeemitter 100 is completed as shown in FIG. 7H.

FIGS. 8A-8D are cross-sections for explaining a method of manufacturingthe MIS type emitter 100 shown in FIG. 4 according to a secondembodiment of this invention. This embodiment refers to the case wherethe gate electrode is made of silicon.

Referring to FIG. 8A, the substrate 110 is prepared and the insulatinglayer 120 is formed on the substrate 110. As shown in the previousembodiment, a silicon wafer processed with a predetermined thickness maybe used as the substrate 110, and the insulating layer 120 is made ofsilicon oxide. A first silicon layer 141 is then formed on theinsulating layer 120 by depositing silicon by chemical vapor deposition(CVD) to a predetermined thickness.

Then, as shown in FIG. 8B, a resist R is coated on the entire surface ofthe first silicon layer 141 and patterned in a desired pattern. In thiscase, resist patterning can be performed by photolithography or typicallithography such as EPL. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 8C, the exposedportion of the first silicon layer 141 is removed by etching using thepatterned resist R as an etch mask, and the remaining resist R iscleaned.

FIG. 8D shows the state in which the patterned first silicon layer 141has been overlain by a second silicon layer 142. Specifically, thesecond silicon layer 142 is formed by depositing silicon on the entiresurface of the resulting structure shown in FIG. 8C to a predeterminedthickness by CVD, thereby forming a gate electrode 140 including thepatterned first silicon layer 141 and the second silicon layer 142deposited on the first silicon layer 141. Thus, the gate electrode 140is has a different thickness for each of the patterned portions.

When compared with the structure of the emitter 100 shown in FIG. 4, anemitter 100′ having the gate electrode 140 is constructed to include theportion of the second silicon layer 142 deposited directly on theinsulating layer 120 and the first silicon layer 141, both of whichcorrespond to the base layer 131 of the emitter 100 shown in FIG. 4, andthe portion of the second silicon layer 142 deposited over the firstsilicon layer 141 which corresponds to the electron-beam blocking layer132 of the emitter 100.

FIGS. 9A-9C are cross-sections for explaining steps in a method ofmanufacturing the MIM type emitter 200 of FIG. 6 according to apreferred embodiment of this invention. The same steps in themanufacturing method of this embodiment as in the previous embodimentswill be described briefly or omitted.

Referring to FIG. 9A, the substrate 210 is prepared, and the lowerelectrode 215 is formed on the substrate 210. Specifically, a siliconwafer processed with a predetermined thickness may be used as thesubstrate 210. The lower electrode 215 is then formed by depositingaluminum (Al)-neodymium (Nd) alloy on the surface of the preparedsubstrate 210 to a predetermined thickness. Subsequently, as shown inFIG. 9B, a metal capable of anodizing, such as aluminum (Al), isdeposited on the lower electrode 215 and anodized to form an oxide layersuch as alumina. The alumina serves as the insulating layer 220.

Then, as shown in FIG. 9C, the gate electrode 230 including the baselayer 231 and the electron-beam blocking layer 232 is formed on theinsulating layer 220, thereby completing the MIM type emitter 200. Inthis case, the gate electrode 230 may be formed by the same process asthe previous one. That is, where the base layer 231 and theelectron-beam blocking layer 232 of the gate electrode 230 are made of aconductive metal and a metal capable of anodizing, respectively, thesame process as the process comprised of steps shown in FIGS. 7B-7E orsteps shown in FIGS. 7B, 7C, and 7F-7H may be performed to form the gateelectrode 230.

Meanwhile, if the gate electrode 230 is made of silicon, it may beformed using the same process as shown in FIGS. 8A-8D.

As described above, an emitter according to this invention has aninsulating layer of a uniform thickness and a patterned gate electrode.This provides a uniform electric field within the insulating layer ofthe emitter and simplifies the manufacturing method of the emitter, ascompared with a conventional method.

While this invention has been particularly shown and described withreference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood bythose skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may bemade therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

1. An emitter for an electron-beam projection lithography (EPL) systemcomprising: a substrate; an insulating layer overlying the substrate;and a gate electrode comprised of a base layer formed on the insulatinglayer to a uniform thickness and an electron-beam blocking layer formedon the base layer in a predetermined pattern.
 2. The emitter of claim 1,wherein the insulating layer is made of a silicon oxide layer.
 3. Theemitter of claim 1, further comprising a lower electrode between thesubstrate and the insulating layer.
 4. The emitter of claim 3, whereinthe insulating layer is made from an anodized metal.
 5. The emitter ofclaim 1, wherein the base layer is made of a conductive metal, and theelectron-beam blocking layer is made of a metal capable of anodizing. 6.The emitter of claim 5, wherein the base layer is made of a metalselected from the group consisting of gold (Au), platinum (Pt), aluminum(Al), titanium (Ti), and tantalum (Ta).
 7. The emitter of claim 5,wherein the electron-beam blocking layer is made of a metal selectedfrom the group consisting of titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), and ruthenium(Ru).
 8. The emitter of claim 3, wherein the base layer is made of aconductive metal, and the electron-beam blocking layer is made of ametal capable of anodizing.
 9. The emitter of claim 8, wherein the baselayer is made of a metal selected from the group consisting of gold(Au), platinum (Pt), aluminum (Al), titanium (Ti), and tantalum (Ta).10. The emitter of claim 8, wherein the electron-beam blocking layer ismade of a metal selected from the group consisting of titanium (Ti),aluminum (Al), and ruthenium (Ru).
 11. The emitter of claim 1, whereinthe base layer and the electron-beam blocking layer of the gateelectrode are made of silicon.
 12. The emitter of claim 3, wherein thebase layer and the electron-beam blocking layer of the gate electrodeare made of silicon.